Laws, Regulations & Annotations
Business Taxes Law Guide – Revision 2016
Sales and Use Tax Annotations
425.0000 PRESCRIPTION MEDICINES—Regulation 1591
425.0150 Medicines. "Medicines" within the meaning of Revenue and Taxation Code section 6369 and Sales and Use Tax Regulation 1591 include not only items applied directly to patients but also items, such as surgical scrubs, applied by hospital personnel to their own bodies to benefit the patient and which constitutes a critical component of the patient's treatment.
The definition of the term "medicines" was not changed by the court's decision in Purdue Frederick v. State Board of Equalization, 218 Cal.3d 1021 (1990). It merely expanded the Board's previous interpretation of what constitutes the treatment of a human being within the context of a hospital/health facility. Under the court's view, an item must still be a "substance or preparation" and there must be a causal connection between its use and the treatment of a human being. 10/17/90.